Face Down, Gippal
by RikkuElloneValentine
Summary: Gippal starts abusing Rikku when she starts hanging around Vincent more than him. How will this be handled? RikkuxGippal&RikkuxVincent later in the FanFic. Chapters are kinda short; Sorry! D:
1. Rikku Moves In

Rikku sat in her room, looking out the window. She was in her own house but only because she got tired of Home and the Gullwings got seperated. Yuna was married to Tidus and they lived in their own house together, already with one child. Paine had re-joined the Crimson Squad, having her travel all over the place. Rikku had been left alone with no love, nor a family to live with. She had made new friends, though, and loved having them around. She also had a crush on one of her friends; Gippal. She had always secretly loved him and showed only some of her feelings when around him. She was totally lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice that Kit, her kitten, had jumped in her lap. Coming out of her daze, she got the sudden idea to sneak over to Gippal's house just to peek what he was doing. She had a feeling that he was still awake. So, she got up and left her house, walking over to his. 'Being a thief really has it's advantages' thought Rikku as she peered in through Gippal's window, watching him silently.

_I've been driving for an hour._

_Just talkin' to the rain._

_You say I've been drivin' you crazy_

_And it's keepin' you awake._

Gippal was pacing around his living room, frustrated at how he couldn't get two things off of his mind. The first thing was Machina. Since he was the leader of the Machina Company, he had to think up new ideas for Machina. The second person was Rikku, the Al Bhed girl. He didn't exactly know his feelings for her, but he knew her feelings for him. It had been so obvious! Once Gippal got tired of pacing, he sighed and sat down on the nearest couch. Blinking, he rested his head on the back of the couch.

_So give me one good reason_

_Tell me why I should stay._

_'Cause I don't wanna waste another moment_

_Saying things we never meant to say._

Rikku grumbled as Gippal sat on the couch. 'Great. Now I can't see him!' She stood up and looked for an open window. Sure enough, the window in his bedroom was open. She climbed her way up to the window, getting a splinter in her finger. "Ow!" She exclaimed, but covered her mouth in fear that Gippal might have heard her. She waited for any sounds of footsteps, but none came. 'Good. He didn't hear me.' She then continued climbing up. Once at the window, she squeezed through it and stood up, looking around the room. 'I'm in his room!' She excitedly thought to herself, smiling. "Calm yourself, Rikku, or you'll give yourself away." She quietly said to herself. She then walked out of the room silently and sat on one of the stairs that had a good view of Gippal.

_And I take you just a little bit_

_I hold my breathe and count to ten._

_I've been waitin' for a chance to let you in._

Rikku watched Gippal, waiting for him to do something. Anything. But all he did was just sit on the couch and stare up at the ceiling. Rikku let out a small sigh and got up, walking back up the stairs. But clumsy her tripped over her shoelace and fell backwards down the stairs. Gippal heard this and instantly got up from the couch, his hand put up in front of him protectively. "Who's there?" He asked. But all he got in response was a few 'Ow's. Slowly he walked toward where the sound came from. He couldn't help but to smile as he saw Rikku sitting up and rubbing the back of her head. His smile disappeared, though, just as Rikku looked up at him, her face flushed. "I...Umm..I just..." Gippal stopped her sentence short and helped her up and pulled her into the kitchen. He handed her an ice pack for her head and sat down. "Why'd you sneak into my house, Rikku? Hmm?" Rikku heard the anger in his voice and lowered her head. "I...I had a feeling that you were still up and..And I just wanted to see what you were doing." Rikku kept her head lowered, tears swelling up in her eyes. Gippal let out a sigh and hugged her. "I'm alright and just thinking of new ideas for machina and..." He cut his sentence short and blinked. "And?" Rikku asked, looking up at him. Gippal shook his head and stood up. "Nothing. Now, let's get you home." He ruffled her hair a bit as she stood up. Rikku sighed and lowered her head again. "But..But I don't wanna leave! It's so lonely in my house...Can I move in with you? Please?" She looked up at Gippal with such a pleading look that he couldn't say no to it. "Fine," Gippal said. "We'll move all your stuff in here tomorrow. Tonight you can sleep on the couch in my room. Rikku smiled and hugged him tightly. "Thank you!"

_If I just breathe  
Let it fill the space in between  
I'll know everything is alright  
Breathe  
Every little piece of me  
You'll see  
Everything is alright  
If I just breathe  
_


	2. Gippal Goes Sphere Hunting?

Rikku sprang up from her lying down position. She had had a very bad dream. One where Gippal had left her, never to come back. Now that scared her. She looked over at Gippal, who was still sleeping. She then looked over at the clock. 1:40 am, it read. She layed back down, pulling the covers back over her. She stared over at Gippal, who started to turn over. She quickly closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep. Gippal only turned and stayed asleep. Rikku let out a sigh, and opened her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling blankly until sleep overtook her once again.

_There she goes  
There she goes again  
Racing through my brain  
And I just can't contain  
This feeling that remains_

When Gippal woke up, Rikku was still asleep. He chuckled a bit and softly patted her head as he walked past her and to the door. He walked downstairs after getting dressed and watched a bit of tv. Deciding to be nice, he got up and fixed breakfast for him and Rikku. He then sat quietly and waited for Rikku to wake up.

_There she goes  
There she goes again  
Pulsing through my veins  
And I just can't contain  
This feeling that remains  
_

Rikku woke up and looked around for Gippal. Not seeing him there, she got a bit paicky that her dream had come true. She quickly got dressed, did her hair and ran downstairs. She peeked into the kitchen, seeing Gippal and letting out a sigh of relief. "Mornin' Cid's girl. What? You thought I left you alone in _my_ house?" Gippal asked. Rikku shook her head and sat down across from him. "What's all this for?" She asked him. "I thought I'd be nice and fix breakfast." Rikku nodded and looked down at the food. "I didn't poision it, if that's what your thinking." Rikku looked up and shook her head. "No. I'm not thinking that. It's just the morning tiredness." Gippal nodded as Rikku took a bite. After she finished she thanked Gippal for the breakfast and got up. "Don't you have to go to work today?" She asked. Gippal shook his head. "Then what will you do all day? I have sphere hunting." Gippal thought for a bit then smiled. "I'll go with you." He said. Rikku blinked. "Really?" Gippal nodded. "Alright. C'mon." She got up and grabbed her bag, heading for the door. Gippal followed after her.

_There she goes  
There she goes again  
She calls my name,  
Pulls my train  
No one else could heal my pain  
And I just can't contain  
This feeling that remains  
_

Yuna tilted her head as she saw Gippal with Rikku. "Uhh, Rikku? Why is he here?" Rikku glanced over at Gippal and pulled Paine and Yuna over. "I've moved in with him and he said that he doesn't have to go to work today. So he suggested that he come sphere hunting with us. Please? Can he? Please, Yunie??" Yuna looked over at Gippal, sighed, then nodded. "Alright. Let's just hope he's useful." Rikku squealed with joy and turned, putting her thumbs up to Gippal. She then turned and hugged Yuna. "Thank you!" Yuna lightly hugged back, blinking. Rikku grabbed Gippal's hand and pulled him along. "Whoa!" Yuna giggled and followed after them, along with Paine. By the time Yuna and Paine got on the airship, Rikku was showing Gippal how the sphere tracker worked. Gippal barely listened. He just stared at her, almost longingly.

_There she goes  
There she goes again  
Chasing down my lane  
And I just can't contain  
This feeling that remains_

"We've tracked a sphere!" Yelled Paine. Rikku came rushing next to Paine. "Where?" She asked. "In the Farplane." Was Paine's reply. "All the way over there? Dang." Rikku blinked and looked around. "Hey, where'd Gippal go?" Paine shrugged, crossing her arms. "Hmph.." Rikku ran off to find Gippal. She found him on top of the airship. "Like the view?" She giggled and poked Gippal in the back. "Hey, Rik." Rikku folded her hands behind her back, tilting her head. "First it was Cid's girl, now it's Rik?" Gippal just shrugged. "We've tracked a sphere in the Farplane." Rikku said, turning her gaze on him. "All that way?" Gippal asked, looking back at her. "I know. That's what I asked. But it'll be worth it." Gippal shrugged again as Rikku turned and went back down to the cabin.


	3. Confession from Rikku

**Author's Note-** Yes, I know. This is a short chapter! But I had a bit of wtriter's block. e.e;;

--

_I'm in heaven when you kiss me  
show me how you miss me  
take me with you back to wonderland  
I'm in heaven when you kiss me  
show me how you miss me  
Take me with you back to wonderland  
_

The airship had already landed in the Farplane, and Rikku, Yuna and Paine were scouting for the sphere. Gippal just stood by the ship, watching them. "Gippalll," Rikku whined. "Come scouting with us! Pretty please?" Rikku gave him such a pleading look that he couldn't say no. Pretty soon, Gippal and Rikku were searching together. Tripping over her own shoelace while searching, Rikku fell forward, hitting a wall. "Owww!" Gippal ran over to her as the ground underneath started to shake. "An...Earthquake? Here?" Gippal asked, looking around while holding Rikku close to him. The ground underneath them collapsed and they fell down a hole. Gippal was holding Rikku tighter than ever. They then hit the ground. Hard. Rikku looked up from Gippal's chest, moving from his grasp. She stood up and looked around. "Whoaa...Where are we?" Gippal shrugged and got up. "No clue. But are you alright, Rikku?" Rikku turned to him and nodded. "Yeah. Maybe a few bruises, but I'll be fine."

_You capture me with a stare  
I'd follow you anywhere  
You lead me into temptation  
Condition me to enjoy  
I'm like a kid with a toy  
I'm losing my concentration_

"Hey! Are you guys all right?" Yuna shouted down at them. "Yeah. We're fine!" Was Rikku's reply. "We'll go get Brother and Shinra for help, 'kay?" Before the two could answer, Yuna and Paine were running back to the airship, which was quiet a ways away. Rikku sighed and sat down. 'Trapped in a hole with Gippal,' She thought. 'Great. He'll probably tease me like crazy while we're down here! But then again, he may not...' She looked up at Gippal, who was feeling the walls. "What're you doing?" She asked. "Seeing if there are any rocks in the wall, so we can climb up." Rikku shook her doubtedly and Gippal turned to look at her.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just you and yer crazy ideas."

"_My_ crazy ideas? You're the one who begged Yuna if I could come along!"

"I was being nice! You said you didn't have to go to work today."

"_Why_ were you being nice?"

Rikku blinked and hesitated before answering. "Because I..I...I love you.." Gippal smirked a bit and stepped closer to Rikku. Placing a hand under her chin, he brought her face up to his and kissed her. Rikku kissed back, slightly deepening the kiss.

_One kiss from you I'm on fire  
your touch is all I desire  
One look and you take me higher  
You know I couldn't resist  
Yeah I miss  
every time I'm with you  
Every time that we kiss  
_


	4. Misunderstood Affair

_Hey girl you know you drive me crazy  
One look puts the rhythm in my hand  
Still I'll never understand why you hang around  
I see what's going down.  
_

Rikku was sleeping soundly on Gippal's shoulder until he shook her awake. She raised her head wearily, looking around. "Hey, Yuna and Paine are back." Gippal told her as she yawned. Her face lit up after he said those words. "Really?" Gippal nodded and pointed upward, Rikku following his finger. She waved her hands above her head. "Hey! It's about time!" She yelled. "Sorry! We had to search all over the airship for a rope. Plus, we met a new person!" Yuna yelled back excitedly. "Then hurry up and let us up!" Yuna laughed at Rikku. 'Same old out-going Rikku' She thought as she let down the rope. "Vincent, could you help me pull them up?" The man nodded at Yuna, and stood behind her holding the other end of the rope. 'Vincent?' Rikku thought as she climbed up the rope. 'Hmm...That name sounds so familiar.' Once at the top she jumped up and helped Yuna bring Gippal up. "Geez, Gippal, yer really heavy! Y'know?" Rikku said as she helped him out of the hole. "Shut it, Cid's girl. You're just weak." Rikku stuck her toungue out at him then giggled. "Hey, guys, I want you to meet--" Before Yuna could finish, Rikku interrupted her. "Vincent!" She rantowards Vincent and hugged him, making him stumble back a bit. Vincent blinked, lightly hugging back. "How does she know him?" Gippal whispered over to Yuna, who just shrugged at his question. "Beats me."

_A pebble in the water makes a ripple effect  
Every action in this world will bear a consequence  
If you wait around forever you will surely drown  
I see what's going down.  
_

Once back in Spira, Rikku told Vincent everything that had happened to her while Vincent had been...Well, roaming around the planet. Vincent listened quietly, nodding at the appropiate times. Once she finished telling him everything, she asked him what he had been doing.

"Just, you know, saving the planet from complete distruction." Was Vincent's reply to Rikku.

'He hasn't seemed to have changed much,' Thought Rikku. "Rikku?" Vincent's voice broke straight through her thoughts. She looked over at him and tilted her head, showing him that she was ready to listen. "Who was the other guy next to you earlier?"

"Oh. You mean Gippal? He's my boyfriend. Been dating him for a week now." Rikku answered, smiling brightly. Vincent had also stayed with them for a week.

Vincent felt a small pang of disappointment. "I'm going for a walk." Vincent announced. Rikku instantly jumped up from her seat. "I'll go with you!" She ran to catch up with Vincent. He didn't dare argue with her; Once her mind was made up, she was always too stubborn to change it, no matter how hard someone tried to convince her. Once they stepped outside, a shiver ran down Rikku's spine from the coldness of the wind. "Something wrong?" Vincent asked. Rikku shook her head. "Just a bit cold is all." Vincent nodded and started walking, Rikku following closely behind him, the sound of her soft humming drifting up to his ears. He relaxed a bit, but stayed silent. He finally reconized the song she was humming. 'A...Church song?..' He thought and stopped walking.

"What's wrong?" Rikku asked.

"You're going against Yevon's teachings, Rikku."

"How do you know about his teachings?!"

"You told me. Remember?"

"Oh. Right." Rikku looked down.

Vincent turned from her, heading back to her and Gippal's house.

"Wait!" She ran after him and tugged on his cloak. "Please, please don't tell anyone, Vincent!" For a 17-year-old, she was pretty strong. Vincent stopped and looked back at her.

"Why shouldn't I?"

"Because! I'll get kicked out of the Gullwings and out of Home! I'll be disgraced by everyone, even Gippal!" She whimpered and kept tugging on Vincent's cloak. "Please!!" Vincent sighed and turned back around, facing her. "Alright! I won't." Rikku let go of his coat, letting out a sigh of relief at the same time, and hugged Vincent tightly. Gippal had seen the whole thing, but heard nothing of the conversation. Jealousy bubbled up inside him, which soon turned into anger. He went to search for his whip. Once he found it, Rikku and Vincent were already inside. Rikku's foot steps could be heard as she came up the stairs. She opened the door and smiled at Gippal, not noticing his glare. "Hey, hun," She said, leaning forward to kiss him. Gippal just leaned back, avoiding the kiss. Rikku stood normally and blinked, looking up at Gippal. "Something wrong?.."

"Why do you hang out with that guy?" Gippal asked sternly.

"He's my friend. He's new to Spira, I was just--"

"Friend? Yeah, right." He cut her off.

Rikku still didn't get it. "What?"

"Turn around." Gippal commanded her. Rikku instantly obeyed. Gippal gripped the whip in his hand, raised it above his head, and brought it down upon Rikku's back. She let out a small yelp as he did the same thing three more times. By the time he was done, she was trembling with pain.

_Do you feel like a man  
When you push her around?  
Do you feel better now, as she falls to the ground?  
Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end  
As your lies crumble down, a new life she has found.  
_

After Gippal rushed her out of their room, Rikku thought of who in the house would be kind enough to let her sleep in their room for the night. Her first though was Yuna, but then she shook her head, remembering how motherly she could be. Paine wouldn't really care. The only person left was Vincent. She made her way over to his room, barely being able to walk because of the pain the traveled down her spine. She stopped in front of his door and raised her fist, knocking lightly on the door. 'He won't answer' She thought. 'He's probably still sleeping. Or thinking about that Lucrecia girl. Or...' Her thoughts trailed off as the door opened. "Rikku...?" Vincent blinked, staring at the shuddering girl in front of him. "G-Gippal wouldn't let me sleep in our room tonight. And if I went to Yuna's she'd get all mother-like and yell at Gippal, which would bring more trouble. Paine wouldn't care, not one bit..." "And I was the only one left to ask, correct?" Vincent asked. Rikku slowly nodded. He softly sighed and opened his door more letting her in. He looked at her back, which was red. "What happened, Rikku?" Rikku wrapped her robe tightly around her and sat down on the side of Vincent's bed. "He didn't tell me. But I'm guessing that he saw me hugging you outside and got the impression that I was cheating on him. When I went into our room, he looked really mad and had his whip out on his bed. He told me to turn around, so I did. After I turned around, he whipped me four times..." Vincent sat down next to Rikku and pulled her closer to him, hugging her tightly. Soft sobs came from her but soon stopped. It didn't take long for him to figure out that she had fallen asleep. Vincent, too, soon fell asleep.

_Do you feel like a man  
When you push her around?  
Do you feel better now, as she falls to the ground?  
Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end  
As your lies crumble down, a new life she has found.  
_


	5. Where'd Rikku Go?

**Author's Note--** Gippal is not in this one. Maybe a bit at the beggining&end[Oops! Just gave away the secret kidnapper at the end Dx] but he does not appear until the next chapter, 'kay? Thanks :D

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_I know all about,  
Yea about your reputation  
And now it's bound to be a heartbreak situation  
But I can't help it if I'm helpless  
Every time that I'm where you are_

Rikku woke up and looked around. This didn't look like her and Gippal's room. She looked over, seeing Vincent next to her. 'Oh, no! I didn't...! Did I?' She thought. She looked at herself and then back over to Vincent, letting out a sigh of relief. 'Ok. So I didn't have sex with Vincent...But why am I in his bed?..' She fully sat up, softly wiggiling out of Vincent's grasp as she did so. She winced as she felt a sharp pain in her back. She ignored it and walked out of the room, her steps silent. 'Gippal should already be at work, so hopefully I can change..' She traveled down to the room at the end of the hall and stepped in. Walking over to the closet, she saw Gippal still asleep in his bed. She quickly, but quietly, grabbed some clothes and cahnged into them in the bathroom. Once done, she peeked into Yuna and Paine's rooms but didn't find them there. 'Probably went back home..' She then peeked into Vincent's room, seeing that he was still asleep. Not being able to resist the motherly urge, she walked over to him and layed him down straight. She then pulled the covers halfway up his body, stopping when she heard footsteps in the hall. Knowing it was Gippal, she ducked behind the open door, holding her breath. Gippal mumbled something that she couldn't make out, then turned and continued on his way to work. She let out a sigh of relief and slipped out from behind the door and into the kitchen. There, she started cooking breakfast, humming softly.

_You walk in and my strength walks out the door  
Say my name and I can't fight it any more  
Oh I know, I should go  
But I need your touch just too damn much_

Vincent woke up and looked around his room. He had been layed down straight and his covers were pulled up halfway up his body. 'I don't remember sleeping like that...' He thought as he stood up. He blinked a few times to clear his vision. Once his vision was cleared, he saw that Rikku wasn't there. Even though he knew that he probably should worry about where she was, he didn't. He then walked into the kitchen, seeing Rikku fixing breakfast while humming. "Morning sleepy head," She giggled. Vincent wondered how she knew he was in the room without even looking back.

"Vincent?" Once again, her voice broke through his thoughts and he turned to look at her.

"What happened last night? We didn't...Did we?"

He looked at her, confused. Once he figured out what she meant by the last part of her sentence, he shook his head. "No. Nothing happened. I just held you while you cried."

Rikku nodded. "Oh. Alright. Sorry 'bout that, though. I probably woke you from your sleep, huh?" She rubbed the back of her head a bit, smiling innocently.

"No."

She nodded again then went back to fixing breakfast.

"Rikku, I have a question to ask you."

"Yes, Vincent?" She glanced over at him while turning a pancake over.

"How do you cheer up so fast?"

"What?"

"Well, you could be sad one moment then all hyper again the next. How do you do that?"

Rikku stopped what she was doing and blinked. "I...Do'nt really know. Actually, I don't think I even knew I do that."

Vincent nodded and Rikku went back to flipping pancakes. Silence filled the room, which made them both slightly uncomfortable. Soon, Rikku finished and got the table set, putting pancakes on both of their plates.

"There are only two plates, Rikku..Where are the others?"

"Gippal's at work, Yuna's back at her house with Tidus and their child and Paine's probably out with the Crimson Squad."

Vincent nodded and took a bite of his food. They both ate in silence.

_Loving you, That isn't really something I should do  
I shouldn't wanna spend my time with you ya  
Well I should try to be strong  
But baby you're the right kind of wrong  
_

Rikku tugged on Vincent's cloak, trying to get him out of the room he had stayed in for a week. "C'mon, Vin!" Vincent stayed where he was, or at least tried to. He kept stumbling back each time Rikku tugged on his cloak. 'Damn, she's strong!' He thought to himself. "Rikku, I said no." Rikku let go of his cloak and stomped her foot on the ground. "Fine!" She stomped out of the room and went to her room, slamming the door loudly. Thirty minutes later, she opened the door to her room again and went back to where Vincent was.

"Viiiinnnceeentttt," Vincent both cringed and jumped as she said his name. How he hated it when she stretched his name like that.

"Gawd, Rikku. Why do you always sneak up on me like that?" He said, turning around. "And my answer is no."

Rikku giggled a bit. "'Cause it's fuun. And you don't even know what my question is yet so how can you say no?"

He blinked and shrugged. "Alright. What's your question?"

"Can I meet your friends?"

"What?"

"Your friends. I wanna meet 'em. C'mon! Pleaseee?"

Vincent hesitated before answering, then nodded his head. "Alright."

_It might be a mistake  
A mistake I'm makin'__  
__Cause no one's ever made me feel  
The way I feel when I'm in your arms_

Rikku followed close behind Vincent as he lead her through Midgar. She had never been in Midgar before. Everything seemed so...Quiet. Unlike all the hussle and bustle in Spira. She looked around, amazed by what she saw. She bumped into Vincent, who had stopped. "Sorry," She looked up at the building that they were standing in front of. "'Seaventh Heaven'?" She looked up at Vincent, blinking. He nodded and opened the door. As soon as he stepped in, he was tackle hugged by a short black-haired girl. Rikku stepped back a bit and looked down at the girl on top on Vincent, giggling a bit. She stepped passed him, but Vincent grabbed her ankle to hold her back. She pouted a bit, crossing her arms across her chest. Vincent took the black-haired girl off of him and stood up.

"Yuffie, what did I say about tackling me?"

"Sorry." Yuffie said.

"Who's the other girl beside you, Vincent?" A brunette behind the bar asked as everyone else stared at Rikku and Vincent.

Rikku shrank back, feeling uncomfortable with all the stares she was getting. Vincent put a hand on Rikku's back and gently pushed her forward again. She winced as his hand touched her back; It still hurting from the whipping.

"This is Rikku. Rikku Highwind." Vincent said as a short-haired blonde man stood up.

"Holy shit! She has the same fuckin' last name as me!"

Rikku looked over at the short haired blonde, blinking. The brunette that was behind the bar walked up beside Rikku.

"His name's Cid Highwind." She told her. "I'm Tifa Loackhart. And that's Cloud," Tifa pointed to a blonde spiky-haired man who waved. "that's Barret," Tifa then pointed to tan skinned man with a gun arm, who also waved. "that's Yuffie," Tifa pointed to the black-haired girl who had tackled Vincent. "Hiya!" Yuffie said. "And that's Red XII, aka Nanaki." Tifa pointed to a red dog[At least it looked like a dog to Rikku]. "And you've already met Vincent." Rikku nodded and smiled. Tifa glanced at Rikku's back, which was still red from the whip.

"Rikku, why is your back all red...?"

Rikku blinked a few times. "Errr...Umm....Ermmm..," She shifted un-easily and glanced up at Vincent.

Cid stood up. "If Valentine did it, then I'll do unimaginable things to him. I'll--," He was cut off by Rikku gently pushing him back down in his seat.

"No, no, no. Vincent did nothing,"

"Then who did it?" Tifa asked, a bit of worry and concern clouding her eyes. Rikku sighed out of defeat. "Alright. I'll tell you all, but you might wanna sit down first...," Everyone did as they were told, except for Vincent who just stayed in the back, his arms folded across his chest while listening to Rikku's story, which he had already heard once.

_I should try to run but I just can't seem to  
'Cause every time I run your the one I run to  
Can't do without what you do to me,  
I don't care if I'm in to deep  
_

After Rikku had told her story, she was always asked the same question; "Why didn't you fight back?" And her answer was always the same; "Because I didn't know he'd whip me!" She managed to go outside for a bit to clear her mind of what she had just told them. Obviously, she didn't want to think about what Gippal did to her, or even about Gippal. Soon enough, she felt a presence behind her. A very..._familiar_ presence.

"Yer friends can be quite annoying sometimes, y'know, Vince?" She said, looking back at Vincent from the corner of her eye. "But they're still alright, not any better than mine." She smiled a bit and spun around on her heel, now facing Vincent. "Hey, wanna go for another walk?" She tilted her head a bit, waiting for a reply from him. The only reply she got was a quick nod and his cloak just brushing her arm. She followed after him, her smile never leaving her face. Once in the city, they passed a dark alley way. Rikku felt a hand over her mouth and was quickly pulled away into the dark alley. Before completely disappearing, she manged to tug at Vincent's cloak. Her hand was slapped away, though. Vincent had felt the tug, thankfully, and turned around, but saw nothing but the other people around him and the darkness of the alley. Rikku was no where to be seen.


	6. I Live To Make You Free

**Author's Note--** I sped it up a bit. It has been two weeks, and Rikku is still nowhere to be found. In case you guys didn't catch who her secret kidnapper was, it was Gippal. The over jealous Gippal. Now, enjoy the chapter! I do not own any of the characters; Square Enix does.

_______________________________________________________

Two weeks had passed. Two weeks. And still no sign of Rikku. Vincent barely even talked anymore. Nor did he eat or sleep much. His friends were worried about him but said nothing. Tifa succeeded in comforting him...sometimes. Yuffie only became an annoyance to him, like always. Cloud just gave him company, never really knowing what to say. Cid would ramble on about how he shouldn't blame himself, cuss words included. Barret just left him alone. 'Why won't she send a sign of some sort so I can tell if she's ok?' Vincent asked himself later that night. He was laying in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He must've fell asleep without meaning to, because next thing he knew, he was back in the manor main floor on the couch, Rikku sitting across from him. 'It's a dream,' He thought. 'Definitely a dream.' But it wasn't a dream. It was a flash back.

_--The dream/flashback--_

"_Sing to me, Rikku." Vincent said._

"_Why? Wouldn't you rather hear Yuna sing?" She retorted, obviously tired. The gunslinger just shook his head._

"_No. I want to hear you sing."_

_A seemingly long silence. He heard Rikku sigh before her next words. "Alright. Every song has a reason to them. So once I'm done, you have to tell me that reason why I chose to sing it, 'kay?" Vincent nodded. Rikku paused before singing. "If you be my star, I'll be your sky. You can hide underneath me and come out at night. When I turn jet black and you show off your light. I live to let you shine. I live to let you shine. And you can sky-rocket away from me, and never come back if you find another galaxy far from here with more room to fly. Just leave me your stardust to remember you by."_

_She paused again, trying to remember the next words. Vincent sat there, unmoving, his eyes closed. He would've looked dead if his chest wasn't moving from his breathing. 'She'll sacrifice herself for me,' He thought. 'That's why she chose the song.' Rikku then continued singing. "If you be my boat, I'll be your sea. The depth of pure blue just to probe curiosity. Ebbing and flowing and pushed by a breeze. I live to make you free. I live to make you free…That's all I remember of it, Vince." Vincent opened his eyes and looked at her, crimson meeting green swirls. "You'd sacrifice yourself for me, that's why you sang the song. I can't help but to wonder, Rikku, why?"_

"_Because…" Her voice trailed off into a yawn. "Look, Vin, I'm tired. Can I answer your question tomorrow?"_

_**--End of dream/flashback—**_

Vincent woke up and looked around. He was still in the spare bedroom in Tifa's bar. He sighed and layed back down until sleep over took him again.

_--Rikku's captivity—_

'_I live to make you free'_ Those words circled around Rikku's mind many times. She had wanted to say it to a certain person, but the right time to say it never came around. She looked around her. Darkness; The only thing that surrounded her. Sometimes, Gippal would come from the darkness and tell her that she'd bear his child. Each time she said no, and he'd just stomp off back into the darkness. Today would be different, and she knew it. It had two weeks since she was there, but it felt like a year. Every minute that passed seemed to taunt her, saying, "You'll never get out. Your 'Knight in Crimson Cloak' will never come for you. You're gonna stay here forever," She wasn't tied down or anything, but she had a big metal thing on her ankle so each time she tried to escape, it'd send a electrical current through her whole body, which hurt her very much. She tried three times already, and each time was more painful than the last. She grunted and crossed her arms across her chest while sitting on the hard hospital-like bed the was under the light above her; The only light. "You can't keep me here forever, y'know!" She shouted. "You're right. I can't." Came the reply. It was Gippal's voice. She'd know his voice anywhere. His figure emerged from the darkness and he stood in front of her.

"Now, if you say yes to me today, then I'll let you free. Once you're free, you're free from me, too. Meaning that we're done and that your stuff has to be out of my house by next week, got it?"

Rikku thought for a bit. She'd regret her answer and she knew it. But all she wanted right now was to see Vincent, Tifa, Yuna, Yuffie, Cloud, Barret, Cid and even Paine again. She quietly swallowed and nodded.

_--In Tifa's bar—_

Tifa cleaned the counter while Yuffie sat on one of the stools to the bar. Yuffie was talking non-stop, but Tifa didn't mind.

"Do you think Vincent would worry this much about me if I was gone for two weeks without a trace?" Yuffie asked. Tifa shrugged. "He hasn't eaten, slept or talked while she's been gone," Yuffie continued. "What makes her so special that he has to not eat, sleep or talk since her absence?"

"Well, she's the only one he's opened up to." Tifa said.

"He'll open up to me one of these days."

"She never backs down from his death glare, all she does is just giggle whenever she sees his death glare."

"I can resist his death glare, too." Tifa raised an eyebrow. "C'mon. Give me the best imitation of it as you can." Tifa did Vincent's death glare as best as she could. Yuffie shrank away then crossed her arms. "Okay, so maybe I can't…,"

"I think I see the green monster of jealousy coming out of hiding," Tifa said in a sing-song voice. Vincent quietly came downstairs, heading for the door without disturbing the two.

"Alright, alright. I'll admit it. I'm in love with Vincent Valentine! Happy now, Tifa?" Yuffie kept her arms crossed, looking at the brunette. Vincent froze as his name was said. Tifa looked at Vincent as if he where a ghost. Yuffie blinked.

"Tifa, why do you look like you've just seen a ghost…?" No answer from Tifa. "…Vincent's behind me, isn't he?" Tifa nodded and Yuffie turned around, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. Vincent said nothing, but his suprisement showed on his face. Yuffie lowered her head, muttered a soft 'sorry' and went upstairs. "She'll be fine," Tifa said. Vincent nodded and walked out of the bar, heading to Nibelhiem Mountains.

_--Out of captivity; Rikku—_

"You're free."

Rikku quickly changed back into her clothes and walked to the now lighted exit. The metal collar had been taken off of her ankle, so she was free to go. She grabbed her bag and hurriedly went out of the place before Gippal changed his mind. "Tell me if you're pregnant or not when you find out!" Gippal shouted after her. She did not reply but just kept on her way to the exit. She opened the door, blocking her eyes from the sunlight as she stepped out side. Sunlight. It felt so good to finally feel it on her skin again. She then looked around. She was in Nibelhiem. She knew because she'd been here before on one of her travels. She stretched her arms above her head then stretched her back. Her back hurt, though. Gippal abused her again with the same whip, only this time it had had a hook on the end. She also had a sprained ankle from trying to run away from Gippal the day he kidnapped her. She tripped and fell, spraining her ankle that day. It still hurt like hell, but, hey, she was glad to be free. She walked to a man passing by and asked him if he'd seen a man in a red cloak come by. The man said yes and that when he saw him, he was heading to Nibelhiem Mountains. She thanked the man and, despite her sprained ankle, ran towards the Mountains. Many people stopped her and offered to take her in and cure the lined wounds on her back. She just shook her head and said that she was fine and then continued on her way. Once in the mountains, she came to a fork in the road. She didn't know which way to go. She kneeled and inspected the ground for footprints. Sure enough, there were pointed boot footprints leading to the left. She followed them and found Vincent standing on the edge of the cliff. She set her bag down and walked up behind Vincent, wrapping her arms around his stomach. "I live to make you free…," Her voice was barely above a whisper. Vincent's eyes widened as he recognized the voice. "Remember, Vince? When I sang to you that one night in the manor? I told you to tell me the reason behind the song that I sang...," Vincent relaxed a bit as the memory came back to him. "Yes, I do remember." He answered. "I said that the reason why you sang it was because you'd sacrifice yourself for me."

"Then you asked why..," She continued.

"And you never answered." He finished then turned around and hugged her tightly. A small cry of pain came from her and he released her. He turned her around and looked at the scars across her back, very gently tracing them with his human fingers. "The whip had a hook this time…," Rikku nodded. He then caught a glimpse of her swollen ankle. "Sprained ankle, too, huh?" She nodded again. Vincent picked her up, bridal style, and headed back to Shinra Manor. "Wait!" She said. He stopped and looked down at her. "My bag." She pointed next to a rock where her bag was sitting. Vincent went over and picked it up, laying on her stomach for her. She held her bag closely to her and rested her head on his arm, soon falling asleep.


	7. Positive

Rikku sat on the bed in one of the rooms in ShinRa Manor, looking out her window, longing to go out. Vincent stood in her doorway, watching her. "The leaves are falling, Vincent. Fall is coming," Vincent walked and sat next to her. "You want to go and explore, don't you?" Rikku nodded and looked at him.

"But I can go longer than you without traveling or exploring." She teased. Vincent raised an eyebrow.

"Really now? Wanna bet on that?" Rikku nodded. "Yeah!" She though for a moment. "If I win, you gotta tell me your deepest, darkest secret. 'Kay?" Vincent nodded.

"And if I win?"

"Then I'll tell you my deepest darkest secret!" She smiled. "We need boundaries. How about…We can't go anywhere past Edge,"

"Why Edge?" Vincent asked.

"Because, Tifa's bar is there and we wouldn't be able to go visit her," She answered. _'This'll be an interesting bet,'_ thought Vincent. He then nodded. "And we can leave the house for groceries and to visit Tifa," Rikku continued. "Okay?" Vincent nodded. Rikku smiled at him once more as the door bell rang. "Who's that?" She asked as she got up and went downstairs. Vincent followed close behind her. Rikku opened the door and blinked, surprised at who she saw in front of her. "G..Gippal?..." She managed to quietly stutter. Vincent appeared behind Rikku and narrowed his eyes at Gippal. "I have the feeling that I interrupted something." Gippal said with a smirk. Rikku fell silent so Vincent did the talking for her. "What're you doing here?"

"I'm only here to talk to Rikku," Vincent growled. Rikku looked back at Vincent and shushed him. She then opened the door for Gippal to come in. Vincent opened his mouth to speak but Rikku covered his mouth with her finger. "You, shush," She then looked to Gippal. "And you, sit and wait," she pointed to the couch. Gippal obeyed. Rikku looked back at Vincent and grabbed his wrist, pulling him to the kitchen. "You let Gippal in. Why?" Vincent asked.

"Because, he said he was here to talk to me and he will,"

"But—"

"Shush!" She interrupted his sentence. "I know perfectly well what he did and I still hate him as much as you do. But he had yelled something after me when I left the place where he took me to a while back. I'm guessing that he's here to repeat it or to clarify it for me." _'Lie,'_ She thought to herself. She hated lying to Vincent; It practically killed her on the inside. "But what if he…" Vincent started, letting his voice trail off.

"If he tries to beat me again, I'll scream, which will be your signal to come down and kick him out. But that's only if he tries to beat me, 'kay?" Vincent nodded. "Okay. Now, you go upstairs and wait." She gently pushed him out of the kitchen and towards the stairs, stopping once he was climbing up the stairs on his own. But before Vincent was all the way up, she secretly took his Cerberus and replaced it with one of her own daggers. She thought she'd need it to at least threaten Gippal. She smiled at the image of Gippal's scared look. She then made her way over to Gippal. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I want your stuff out of my house," He said coldly. "I can't live there with all your shit everywhere."

"I'll have it out by next week. Anything else?"

"Yes. Have you figured out if you're…?"

Rikku shook her head. "No. And if that's all I suggest you leave. Vincent doesn't like you much anymore,"

"Ah. So he feels the same way,"

"I never cheated on you, just so you know. He's been my friend for a long time and was actually there for me, unlike you."

"I was there for you!" Gippal stood up.

"Hell no you weren't! All you did was tease me and make me feel like I was nothing!"

Gippal stayed silent for a moment and then moved toward Rikku, reaching out for her. "I'm sorry.."

Rikku backed away from him. "Don't touch me!" She yelled and turned her head away from him and closed her eyes to stop tears from flowing out of her eyes. She then turned back to Gippal and opened her eyes. "Don't you know that it's too late to apologize?" She brushed past him and headed toward the stairs. Vincent was just coming down since he had heard Rikku's yelling. Rikku gave Vincent back his Cerberus and took her dagger back then headed upstairs to a room. Both Vincent and Gippal watched her go and were silent for a few moments. Gippal was the first one to talk. "So…You and Rikku aren't dating?" Vincent shook his head.

"No. Just friends," He answered. Gippal hit himself in the forehead. "Then I just lost a good one." Vincent nodded again. "Think she'll take me back?" Gippal asked.

"No. I don't think she will. But do me a favor and leave. I don't want Rikku upset anymore than she already is." Gippal nodded and headed toward the door. "I'm guessing that she's gonna ask if she can stay with you since I told her that I wanted her stuff out of my house. Take good care of her like I should have, 'kay?" Vincent nodded once more and Gippal left.

Rikku sat on one of the beds in one of the bedrooms that was in the manor. She held her knees to her chest and clutched a pillow, tear stains on her cheeks. She dried her cheeks and went to find the phone. She was careful not to run into Vincent. Once she found a phone, she called Tifa. "Hey, Tifa, wanna go shopping today?"

"**Sure!"** Came Tifa's reply. **"I'm also gonna bring Yuffie with us, is that okay?"**

"Yeah," Rikku smiled. "Meet in twenty minutes, 'kay? Bye." She hung up and went to the room she was in before. She changed into her extra clothes and headed downstairs, finding Vincent on the couch looking as if he could fall asleep any minute. She decided that she'd tell him where she'd be going before he fell asleep. She quietly sat beside him and poked his arm. He jumped and looked over at Rikku.

"Scared ya," She said with a smile. "Hey, I'm going shopping with Yuff and Tifa in twenty minutes, okay?" Vincent nodded. "I have a question, Vincent."

"Yes?"

"Gippal said that he wanted my stuff out of his house and I told him I'd have it all out in a week. I don't have any place to go, so is it alright if I…Uhh…Moved in with you here?" She looked at him, a hint of pleadingness in her eyes. Vincent nodded again. "Of course,"

"Yay! Thank you!" She briefly hugged him and got up, a bright smile gracing her features. A knock came from the door. Rikku skipped over to the door and opened it, being greeted with a hug from Tifa. She hugged back. "Where's Yuffie?" Rikku asked.

"Waiting on the Highwind. But she said to hurry because she's about to barf." Rikku tilted her head questioningly. "Air/Motion sickness." Tifa answered. She nodded and turned to wave bye to Vincent, but found him asleep. "Oh. He's sleeping. Shhh," Rikku put a finger over her lips and tip-toed out of the house, silently closing the door behind her. She then squealed and ran towards the Highwind, quickly climbing in. "Where to?" Cid asked. "To Midgar mall!" answered Rikku. Cid nodded and lifted off the ground.

--At the Mall—

"Race ya!" Yuffie shouted as she ran towards the entrance of the mall. Rikku giggled and ran after her, Tifa soon following after. Rikku was the first to reach the door. "I won!"

"No fair!" Yuffie protested.

"Yes, fair." Rikku briefly stuck her tongue out at the ninja then entered the mall. Tifa laughed at the two and followed Rikku inside, pulling Yuffie along as she passed her. "Whoa!" Yuffie wiggled her wrist out of Tifa's grasp and looked around. "Shopping time!" All three of them said in unison, running aimlessly into the crowd of the mall.

--At ShinRa Mansion—

Vincent woke up from his sleep and looked around. He looked at the clock. He'd been asleep for an hour. Wiping the drowsiness from his eyes, he stood up and headed into the kitchen to prepare supper for him and Rikku for when she came back. He tried to remember all her favorite foods. _'Salmon, corn on the cob and fettuccini,'_ He then brought all those out and started cooking.

--At Tifa's Bar—

"Okay, that's yours, Yuffie. And that's yours, Rikku. Mine, Yuffie's, Rikku's, Yuffie's, Mine, Mine…," Tifa sorted through the items putting them in piles. "Gosh, can you believe how much stuff we bought?" Said Yuffie, smiling brightly.

"Hey, we're girls, it's what we do!" Rikku answered. _'That'd be such a great excuse to tell Vincent if he asks!' _Thought Rikku, smiling. Once Tifa got the items sorted out, she plopped down on the couch, letting out a long and tired sigh.

"Tired, Tif?" Asked Rikku. Tifa nodded. "Then go get some rest!" Rikku pulled Tifa up from the couch by her hands and pushed her up the stairs with help from Yuffie. Once Tifa was up stairs, they both sat on the couch.

"Why'd you steal a pregnancy test, Rikku?" Yuffie asked. Rikku's eyes widened a bit at the question. "Are you pregnant or somethin'?" Yuffie continued.

"H-How'd you know?" Rikku asked in a shaky voice.

"We're both thieves, Rikku."

Rikku sighed and looked down. "…."

"Vincent didn't get you pregnant, right?"

"Oh, gods, no!" Rikku looked up at Yuffie. "I'm 17 and he's…What? Fifty-somethin'?"

Yuffie shrugged. "Hell if I know. Well, if it wasn't him, then who was it?"

"….Gippal."

"Care to tell?"

"It's a long story."

Yuffie spread out her arms. "I've got all night."

--ShinRa Mansion—

The slam of the front door made Vincent cringe. "Oh! Sorry, Vincent!" Rikku said.

"Welcome back," Replied Vincent. Rikku sniffed the air, smelling salmon. "Ohhh, I smell food!" She exclaimed, following her nose into the kitchen. "Oh my gods, Vincent. You're actually cooking?" She said in a playful tone, hugging him from behind. He shivered a bit and she let go of him, stepping back. "Sorry. Didn't know my jacket was _that _cold." Vincent mumbled something that Rikku couldn't make out. She sighed and made her way out of the kitchen, carrying her new stuff behind her. _'I wonder what's got him so mad?'_ She wondered. She walked upstairs and went into the room beside Vincent's, deciding that this room would be hers when she moved in. She looked at the bare walls around her. "When I officially move in, I'm gonna decorate this room my own way." She said to herself. She dug through her bag to find her pen and notepad. While searching, she found the pregnancy test that she stole. _'I'll take it after dinner,'_ She moved it aside and took out her pen and notepad. She put the notepad in her lap and held the pen in her hand. _'Hmm…I haven't drawn for a while…. What should I draw?' _After a few minutes of thinking, she decided to draw her, Tifa and Yuffie together. She was halfway through her drawing when she was called down for dinner. She jumped up and ran downstairs, taking a seat in one of the chairs of the table. She took a bite of her food, her eyes widening. "Oh! Vincent, I never knew you could cook! This is really good!!" Vincent nodded the thanks and continued to eat. They both ate in silence. After dinner was done, Rikku argued with Vincent on who would be doing the dishes. Rikku won. "Now, get some rest, grumpy butt." She had said to Vincent while he was exiting the kitchen. The phone rang as she was washing the dishes. She wiped her hands off and a nearby towel and answered it. "Hello?"

"**Hi hi!" **Yuffie's cheery voice said.

"Hi Yuffie!"

"**Whatcha doin'?"**

"Washing dishes. You?"

"**Ohhh. Just had dinner with Vincent, did ya?"**

"Yes and his cooking is sooo good,"

"**Really? I'll have to bug him to make me something sometime. Anyway, I called to ask if you'd like to have a girls', well more of a thief's, day out tomorrow? It'll be just you and me,"**

"Sure!"

"**Great! I'll meet you at 10:30 tomorrow morning, 'kay?"**

"'Kay!" Rikku hung up and resumed doing the dishes. Once they were done, she went upstairs to see how Vincent was doing. She found him asleep in his room. She went over to the bathroom, pulled out the test and eagerly awaited the results. It came out positive.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Notes;**

Haha! Cliff hanger x] I like makin' cliff hangers :D

I do not own Final Fantasy, though I wish I did!! Square Enix owns FF :/


	8. The Whole Story

_Bleep. Bleep. _The sound of it woke Vincent up, much to his disgust. He reached lazily over to his bed stand until he felt his cell phone, which was still bleeping loudly. He sat up in bed and put the phone to his ear. "Hello?" His voice was even rougher in the morning.

"**Hi Vincent! Did I wake ya?"**Yuffie said. Vincent could tell that she was smiling even though he couldn't see her.

"No. What do you want Yuffie?"

"**Damn! You're even grumpier in the morning, Vinnie!"**A growl was her reply. **"Anyway, is Rikku there? We're supposed to go shopping today. You know, a thieves' day out," **

"Yeah. Just let me get her," He placed the top part of the cell phone on his shoulder as he yelled, "Rikku! Phone call!" In less than five minutes, Rikku came running into his room, eagerly holding out her hand for the cell. He handed it to her. "Hello? Yuffs?" Rikku asked.

"**Yeah, it's me! Just called to say that I'm on my way! Ohh, that rhymed!!"**Both Yuffie and Rikku laughed.

"Hey, after we're done shopping, can we talk?" Rikku's voice was lowered when she asked.

"**Sure! About what?"**

"You'll see. Bye!" Rikku closed the phone and handed it back to Vincent. "Get dressed, Vincent. You're coming along whether you like it or not," Vincent growled within his throat as Rikku innocently smiled and went back to her room. _**'You're gonna let this thief drag you around the mall?' **_Chaos asked.

'_Shut up, Chaos,' _Vincent responded, standing up.

"Come on, guys! We don't have all day!" Yuffie yelled.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Rikku yelled back and came running out of the house, pulling Vincent along behind her. Yuffie giggled. "You're bringing Vincent along?" Rikku nodded triumphantly.

"Whether he likes it or not!"

"Hey! Get yer asses up here or I'm leavin' without ya!" Cid yelled down to them.

"Alright, alright!" Yuffie yelled back and scurried up the ladder. Rikku took Vincent's hand once again and led him to the ladder, climbing up after Yuffie, Vincent soon following them.

Rikku stood in the store in the mall, browsing around. Something black and leathery caught her eye. She turned and looked at a pair of black finger-less gloves. "Ohmigawd…," She blinked and looked at them, taking them off the rack. "Yuffie! Look at these!" She ran over to the ninja and showed her the finger-less gloves. "I am sooo getting these!" Exclaimed Rikku. Yuffie smiled and pointed at the wall, showing her two red daggers, just like Rikku's, but only a tad bigger and could take more damage. Rikku's jaw practically dropped at the sigh of them. "Wow…Vincent! Look at these!!" Vincent walked over to the ninja and the thief. Rikku pointed at the daggers. "I want those! Please?"

"Don't you have your own money?" Vincent gruffly asked.

"I'm already buying these," She held up the pair of gloves. Vincent shook his head. "Meanie!" She frowned and stormed away from him. Yuffie let out a small giggle and followed after Rikku, leaving Vincent next to the daggers. He just stared up at them.

"Why'd you bring Vincent along, anyway?" Yuffie asked Rikku as she bought the gloves. "Tifa wanted to see him, so I thought that while we're out, we could drop him off there and then head back to the mansion where we can do our girl talk,"

"Does Vincent know that Tifa wants to see him?"

"Nope!" Rikku picked up her bag and headed out the door.

"Vincent, we're leaving!" She called back. Vincent looked behind him and followed after the two girls. "So, we're done for the day?" Rikku nodded. "Oh, and, Vincent, Tifa wants to see you so we're dropping you off over at her place, 'kay?"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After Vincent was dropped off, Rikku and Yuffie walked into the mansion. "Let's put 'em in my room for now, 'kay?" Yuffie nodded and followed Rikku into her room, placing the bags on the floor. "So, what'd ya want to talk about?" Yuffie asked.

"Okay. So, you know how you asked if I was pregnant a few days ago?" Yuffie nodded. "Well, at that time, I wasn't exactly sure. But, about 4 days ago, I took the test and it came out…Positive," Yuffie's jaw dropped as she blinked.

"Have you told Vincent?" Rikku shook her head. "So, I'm the first to know?" The blonde nodded. "You should tell him. Tonight."

"W-What?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, I will. But you have to be there with me and come with me when I go to tell my father, for back up, since you're the first to know," Yuffie nodded. "I will! I promise." Rikku smiled and hugged her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome! Now, let's sort through our stuff, shall we?"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It was around 5:30 PM before Vincent came back. Yuffie and Rikku were lounging on the couch. "Welcome back, Vincent!" Yuffie said and got a nod in response. Yuffie then nudged Rikku, slightly nodding. The blonde shook her head, mumbling something about telling him later. Vincent caught that and raised his eyebrow. "Tell me what later?"

Rikku sighed and closed her eyes. "Nothing ever passes through your ears, does it, Vin?" Vincent shook his head. "Might as well sit down. Scoot yer tosh, Yuffs!" Yuffie laughed and obeyed, Rikku following her movements, then patted the now empty spot on the couch. Vincent sat down and looked at the two. "Ugh, this couch is not made for three!" Yuffie complained.

"Well, then you sit on the floor," Rikku responded.

"No,"

"Then quit your whining! Gosh,"

"Ladies, are you going to tell me your 'secret' or not?" Vincent interrupted. Rikku nodded and looked at Vincent.

"I'll start with the customs of the Al Bhed, so you won't get confused. The Al Bhed aren't exactly royalty, but my father likes to think of that way. He said the oldest gets to choose whether or not they want to rule, and if they say no, then the next oldest or the youngest will rule; Depends on how big the family. If the oldest says yes, then they automatically rule. Brother didn't want to rule, so father asked me. I said that I'd think about it and it seemed he didn't have a problem with my answer.

"Gippal just happened to be in the room that day, and so began the Be-Sweet-To-Future-Queen-And-Try-To-Marry-Her junk. Gippal was the one who kidnapped me that day on the street with you. While I was there, he didn't just beat me, he nagged me about giving him an heir, since he planned on marrying me if I said yes to leading the Al Bhed. Every time I said no to him, that led to the beating. The day I was let go, before I was let go, he came in and asked me again, only he added that if I said yes that time, he'd let me free. So – neither of you will like this part – I accepted." She lightly closed her eyes, ready for any criticizing, but, surprisingly, she got none. Only when Vincent spoke did she open her eyes.

"So you're saying you let Gippal take your virginity?" Rikku nodded.

"Only because I wanted to see you guys again! If I hadn't said yes to him, then I'd still be there – or worse, dead…," Rikku closed her eyes again, biting her lip. Yuffie saw Rikku and decided to take over for her. "She told me that she took the test only four days ago and it came out positive," Vincent blinked at the words, staying silent, not really sure what to say. He mumbled something about going to his room, got up and went upstairs.

"He…left," Rikku said, opening her eyes and looking down at Yuffie. The ninja nodded, a wave of sympathy washing over her. Rikku sighed and smiled a bit. "Hey, I'm going to Yuna's. I have seen Lorrenne in a while. Wanna come with me, Yuffs?"

"Sure!" The ninja said, jumping up.

"Okay! Let's leave a note for Vincent though. He'll probably think I left for good." Both nodded and Rikku got up, getting a pen and pencil. She wrote the note and left it on the table for Vincent to see.

"'Kay. That's done. Now, let's go!" Rikku giggled and pulled Yuffie along with her out the door.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After a while, Vincent came out of his room, heading back downstairs. _'It got quiet all of a sudden,' _He thought. Not seeing the girls downstairs, he groaned. _'They left!'_ A growl came from his throat as he walked into the kitchen. A piece of paper caught his eye. Backing up, he picked up the note and read it.

_Vincent,_

_Yuffie and I didn't leave for good, I had just suggested that we go over to Yuna's and see her and Tidus' daughter, Lorrenne. If you wish to come see us, then you may. You know where Yuna's house is; I know you do. I've taken you there a few times. Also, I have made a decision on what I'd like to do with the baby. If you'd like to know, I'll tell you. If you'd rather not know, then it will remain a secret between me and Yuffs. _

_-Rikku_

Vincent sighed softly and set down the note. He walked out of the kitchen and towards the door. He opened the door and walked out of the house, shutting the door tightly behind him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

**Author's Note—**

-Gasp- What will be Rikku's decision? Read the next chapter!...When it comes out xD R&R!


	9. Visit With the Family

**A/N – **Fuck it. I'll just have Lorrenne[MY original character] call Rikku 'auntie' even though that right name for her would be 'second cousin' but how weird would _that _sound? Having a kid call you 'Second cousin Rikku!' xD

Enjoy the chapter!3

___________________________________

"Hi there, Lor!" Rikku dropped her bag next to the door and picked up Lorrenne, Yuna's and Tidus's child.

"Auntie Rikku!" Lorrenne squealed with delight as Rikku picked her up and hugged her.

"My, my, you've grown!"

"Yup!" Lorrenne replied.

"Hey, where are your mommy and daddy? I haven't seen them in a while,"

Lorrenne pointed to the kitchen with one hand and to the living room with the other. "Mommy's id the kitchen and daddy's in the living room."

Rikku nodded. "Thank you, kiddo. Play with my friend Yuffie for a while, 'kay?" Rikku set her down and pointed her in the direction of where Yuffie was standing. "I'll be back in a bit, Yuffs. So could you play with Lorrenne here for a while?"

Yuffie nodded. "Sure!"

"Thank you!" Rikku turned on her heel and went into the living room first. She quietly crept up behind the couch Tidus was sitting on, planning to scare him.

'_Three. Two. One. Scare!' _She thought as she jumped up from behind the couch.

"Boo!" She yelled as she wrapped her arms around Tidus's neck, laughing at his surprised reaction.

"Rikku! Did you really have to scare me like that!?"

Rikku giggled and nodded. "Tehehe. Yes." She took her arms from around his neck and looked up, seeing that the TV was on. "Oh, you lazy bum!" She took the remote from him and turned the TV off.

"Hey!" Tidus reached for the remote back, but Rikku raised it above her head. "I could so get that if I stood up since I'm taller than you, Rikku."

"Yes, but I'm a thief." She stuck her tongue out at him and ran into the kitchen. Tidus got up and chased after her.

"Yuna! Yuna! Help! Your husband's chasing me like a mad man!" Yuna looked up from what she was cooking and blinked as she saw Rikku running from Tidus with the remote to the TV in her hand. She laughed at the two.

"What am I supposed to do? Tackle him to the ground while you go and hide the remote?"

"That would help!"

"Okay!" Yuna dropped what she was doing and tackled Tidus to the ground, pinning him down.

"Yuna!" He protested. "What're you doing?! Rik just took my remote!"

"Sorry, hun, but she _is _a thief; I'm just letting her do her job,"

Rikku laughed and ran out of the kitchen to go hide the remote. She ran into Yuffie and Lorrenne.

"Hey, you guys, help me hide Tidus's remote!" She whispered. Both nodded and ran after Rikku. A few moments later, they came back into the kitchen.

"Okay! The remote's hidden!" Rikku said with a smile. "BUT, before Tidus goes to find it, I wanna take Yuna's place on him for a while!"

Tidus's eyes widened as he shook his, looking pleadingly up at Yuna. "No, no! Please don't let her, Yuna!"

Yuna shrugged. "C'mon. It's just a game," She then looked up at Rikku and motioned for her to come over. Rikku did just that. Yuna quickly got up and, just as quick as Yuna, Rikku got on top of Tidus.

"Ha! Gotcha!" Tidus groaned just as there was a knock on the door.

"Rikku, get off of me so I can get the door!" Rikku shook her head.

"Let Lorrenne get it; the person at the door won't hurt her,"

"How do you know?"

Rikku looked up at Yuffie and smiled. "Because I know that person," She then looked down at Tidus, smiling even more. "_Very _well."

A disgusted look came on Tidus's face. Rikku narrowed her eyes. "Ew, no! Not like that! Pervert," Tidus chuckled and nodded. "Alright. Lorrenne, sweetie, go get the door, please." Lorrenne nodded and went to go get the door.

_Knock. Knock. Knock. _Vincent stood and waited outside of Yuna's house, hearing voices from inside.

"Rikku, get off of me so I can get the door!" That was Tidus and apparently, Rikku was on top of him, but why?

"Let Lorrenne get it; the person at the door won't hurt her," And how'd she know that he was at the door?

"How do you know?" Tidus again.

"Because I know that person," A pause. "_Very_ well." Vincent blinked; Tidus would probably get the wrong idea… "Ew, no! Not like that! Pervert," And Vincent was right, once again. He could hear Tidus's chuckle and him speaking once again, "Alright. Lorrenne, sweetie, go get the door, please." Soon after that, the door opened and there stood little Lorrenne, looking up at Vincent. The little girl smiled and hugged his leg.

"Vincent!" The gunslinger blinked in surprise as he looked down at her. After he processed what was she was doing, he smiled and patted her head.

"Hello, Lorrenne. Are Rikku and Yuffie here?"

Lorrenne nodded. "Yup!"

"May I see them?"

The little girl nodded again. "Sure! Follow me," She grabbed his hand and led him inside and into the kitchen. "Rikku! Yuffie! Vincent's here!" She stopped in the kitchen, let go of his hand and ran back beside Yuffie. _'Now where's Rik – Oh,' _He spotted her on top of Tidus, who was being pinned down by her. Both blondes looked up at him, Rikku smiling and Tidus speechless.

"It isn't what it looks like…," Tidus started.

Rikku shook her head, throwing a glare down at Tidus. "It's _exactly_ what it looks like! It looks like I'm pinning you down, right?" She looked up at Vincent. "If it looks like anything else, please tell. I don't want it to look like he's cheating on Yunie with me with her standing _right there_," Rikku shivered. "I only like him as a brother and close friend, nothing else."

Vincent chuckled and shook his head. "No, it doesn't look like anything other than you pinning him down. But, if I may ask, _why_ are you pinning him down, Rikku?"

Rikku smiled, taking her hands off of Tidus's wrists, but still sat on him, and crossed her arms triumphantly. "I took his remote. He chased me so I came in here, where he still chased me, and told Yuna to pin him down for me so Lorrenne, Yuffie and I could go hide the remote. We did, but I said before Yuna lets him go that I want to pin him down for a while," She looked down at Tidus, still smiling. "Isn't that right?" Tidus nodded.

"Yeah. And you made me miss my football game,"

Rikku rolled her eyes. "_Football_! Is that **all **guys care about?!"

Vincent and Tidus laughed, shaking their heads. "No,"

Rikku looked up at Vincent in awe, blinking. Vincent tilted his head. "What?"

"Ohmaigawd, Vincent, did you just _laugh_?"

The gunman nodded. "Yes,"

"Pinch me; I may be dreaming. Vincent _**actually **_laughed!"

"Why is that such a surprise?" Vincent kept his head tilted.

"I've never heard you laugh before!"

"Neither have I!" Yuffie chimed in.

"I haven't known him long enough to be surprised by him laughing," Yuna said, Tidus and Lorrenne nodding their heads as a sign of agreeing with her.

Vincent shrugged and quickly changed the subject. "What'd you want to talk to me about, Rikku?"

"Oh! Uhmm…Can we talk about that in private?" Vincent nodded.

"Well, go talk with him in private upstairs, Rikku. Like, _now_," Tidus glared up at Rikku.

The blonde turned her gaze back to Tidus. "You just want me to get off of you,"

"Duh!" Rikku stuck her tongue out at him and got off of him, dusting herself off. She then blew a stray braid out of her face, muttering 'dumb braid', while doing so, and smiled, turning to the people behind her.

"_No one_ come upstairs, 'kay?" They all nodded. Rikku grabbed Vincent's and Yuffie's wrists and pulled them along, heading upstairs. "Yuffie's coming, too," Announced Rikku.

"She is?" Vincent asked, his head tiling as he let her lead him.

"I am?" Yuffie chimed in once again.

Rikku shook her head. "Boy, you guys are really out of it today!" She softly giggled as she walked up the stairs.

"Abortion?" Vincent asked as Rikku nodded. "But…Why?"

"I'm only 17; I don't think I'm ready for a baby," The thief turned her head away.

"That'd only be taking an innocent child's life away when it doesn't even have a chance, Rikku,"

"She knows what it means, Vincent! And she hates to do it. But she means what she said about being too young to even take care of it." Yuffie said, her arms crossed. Rikku put a hand on her shoulder, a gesture to tell her to calm down. She then turned her gaze To Vincent.

"I don't like the idea of it either. I'm against abortion. But if you just knew how much is happening right now…," She trailed off, shaking her head.

Vincent tilted his head. "What's happening? If you'd tell me, maybe I'd understand better."

Rikku sighed and took her hand off of Yuffie's shoulder. "I've gotten abused, my father's being a real pain, my brother's gone missing –"

"Whoa! Your brother's gone missing?!" Yuffie looked up at Rikku, her eyes widened. Rikku sadly nodded.

"Nooj said that he hadn't seen him for a week. When I went asking around, everyone said the same thing; 'Haven't seen 'im for about a week. You sure your dad didn't send him somewhere?' Then I went to ask my father about him and he said that he had no clue where he was and that he'd turn up eventually,"

"Wow."

"Different subject, please!"

Vincent nodded. "We'll go back downstairs. Rikku, where'd you hide Tidus's remote?"

Rikku smiled. "In his bedroom."

He nodded again and headed out of the room.

"Well, he took that rather calmly, didn't he?" Yuffie asked. Rikku nodded.

"Maybe a little _too _calmly…,"

__________________________________________

"You found it! Thank you, Vincent," Vincent nodded and handed the remote to Tidus. Rikku and Yuffie came down the stairs giggling. Yuna looked at them and tilted her head, not helping but to smile. "What're you girls giggling about?"

Rikku looked at Yuna and shook her head. "Nothing! So, we should get going, huh?"

"Wait! Rikku, please stay for dinner?" Asked Tidus. Rikku looked over at Tidus and raised an eyebrow, wondering why _he_ was inviting_ her_. She shrugged and nodded.

"Sure. But only if Vincent and Yuffie get to stay, too,"

"Of course! Dinner will be in about an hour or so. Rikku, can you put Lorrenne down for her nap?"

"Yeah! C'mon, Lor!" She grabbed the small child's hand and ran upstairs. Vincent glanced at the people around him before following Rikku; he wanted to see just _how_ she'd put Lorrenne to bed.

___________________________________________

"Whoosh! We're at the landing spot! Ready to land, Lor?" Rikku asked, looking up at the little girl on her shoulders.

"Yes!" Lorrenne replied.

"Okay!" Rikku turned around, sat on the floor and dropped Lorrenne on her bed.

"Whee! That was fun, auntie Rikku! Do it again?" The small girl pleaded. Rikku shook her head.

"No, no. You gotta get to sleep,"

Lorrenne frowned. "Aw! Why?"

"Dunno."

"Well, when dinner comes, promise you'll wake me up? I'm starving!"

Rikku laughed and nodded. "Of course,"

"Pinky promise?" Lorrenne held up her pinky.

"Pinky promise," Rikku hooked her pinky with Lorrenne's. Rikku cringed; a dark presence was behind her. It seemed familiar, but who? She un-hooked her pinky from Lorrenne's and turned around, relaxing when she saw Vincent. She laughed.

"You're becoming just as good as me; sneaking up behind un-expecting people. But, as a thief, I can always sense when there's someone behind me," She smiled, folding her hands in front of her. Vincent just stared at her. The blonde sighed and held up a finger to Vincent. "One moment," She then turned around to face Lorrenne again.

"Okay, little girl, you gotta go to sleep now."

"B-But –"

"No 'but's. Your father said so. Do you know that you have your father's eyes and your mother's hair?"

Lorrenne nodded and smiled. "Yes, you've told me that before,"

"Only because it's true!" Rikku smiled and softly kissed the smaller girl's forehead. She then got up and walked towards the door. "See you later, Lorrenne!" And with that, she turned off the light and closed the door. She turned and looked around for Vincent. "Vincent?"

"Right here," She turned around, finding him in the guest bedroom. She peeked in. "You wanted to say something; what was it?"

Vincent didn't turn to look at her, but spoke anyway. "You'd make a really good mother."

She rolled her eyes. _'Does he even know that he's making me take a guilt trip?' _She decided that she'd ask him that. "Do you even know that you're making me go on a guilt trip with every word you say about the baby?"

Vincent closed his eyes. "I'm not meaning to, Rikku, it just seems so much like…," He didn't have to finish for her to know what he meant.

"I swear, that's all you think about! That Lucrecia girl and Hojo! Memories are great, but that's _**all they are**_! You're like Paine all over again," She shook her head, turned on her heel and went back downstairs. Halfway down the hallway, she leaned forward and clutched her stomach. _'The baby kicking so soon?...No, no. It's something else. Something bad is going to happen, but what?' _She put a hand on the wall to keep her balance. She felt like throwing up, but wouldn't let it happen.

"Rikku? Rikku! Are you okay?" Yuffie and Yuna came running towards her. Rikku forced herself to stand upright and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Lorrenne's in bed, so shhh." She put a finger to her lips and lightly smiled. Yuna frowned and put her hands on her hips, raising her eyebrow while looking at the blonde. "It's something other than that; what is it?" _'Just like Vincent; reading me like a book,' _She shook her head. "Later," Yuna nodded.

___________________________________________

Vincent turned his gaze away from the window and to the hallway. Voices were what he'd heard.

"Rikku? Rikku! Are you okay?" That was Yuna. _'What does she mean by, 'are you okay'? Did something happen to Rikku?' _Vincent started to get up, but Chaos interrupted him.

'_**Hold it there, host. You don't know if she's actually hurt or not. Wait and listen before you make assumptions,' **_He must've not heard Rikku's reply because Yuna spoke again.

"It's something else; what is it?"

_Now _he could hear Rikku. "Later," Then he heard the footsteps going downstairs.

'_**I think dinner may be ready, host. Go downstairs.'**_

Vincent got up and headed downstairs.

___________________________________________

"Rikku! Can you please get the table ready?" Yuna called from the kitchen.

"Already did!" She called back.

"Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Now to go wake up Lor,"

"Why?"

"Because I promised her." The thief turned and ran upstairs, only to run into Vincent. She frowned a bit and looked up at him. She stepped to the side to try and go around him, but he blocked her so she tried the other side. He still blocked her. She gritted her teeth and balled her hands into fists.

"Vincent, let me pass,"

Vincent shook his head. "We need to talk,"

"We'll talk at home. Right now, I've got to keep my promise to Lorrenne or she'll be _very_ disappointed in me. But at least I'll someone to blame if I don't get past." Vincent didn't budge.

"Guess you're getting blamed then," She moved to the other side then quickly to the other side once he tried to block her from her previous move. She ran right past him and down the hallway. She stopped outside Lorrenne's door, panting, clutching her stomach. "Eck. I really feel like throwing up…," She shook her head and took her hand off of her stomach, opening the door to Lorrenne's room. She turned on the light and started clapping. "Wakey, wakey! Dinner's ready!"

The smaller girl sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Ehh…Rikku?"

"Yup yup! Now get up!"

"You kept your promise!"

"Sure as heck I did! Now, do you want food or not?"

"Yeah!"

"Then come on!"

Lorrenne jumped out of bed and followed Rikku down the hall to downstairs.

___________________________________________

Yuna hugged Rikku tightly. "Oh, Yunie! You're hugging me to tight,"

"Oh! Sorry,"

Rikku smiled. "It's alright,"

Yuna nodded. "Now, promise you'll come back and visit again!"

Before Rikku could answer Tidus came out from behind Yuna. "No! No! Don't promise! Do not promise!!"

Rikku smiled and nodded. "I _promise_,"

"Nooooo!" Tidus then laughed and looked at Rikku, who was looking at him strangely. "Kidding, Rik. Just kidding,"

Rikku blinked and stuck her tongue out at him. "I knew that! Jerk,"

Lorrenne broke through between her parents and held up her pinky. "You promised mommy you'd come back by words, but promise me by a pinky promise!"

Rikku laughed and hooked her pinky with Lorrenne's. "Yes, Little Lor," She smiled at the smaller girl. Vincent pulled on her arm, breaking the pinky promise. "We gotta go. _Now_."

"You aren't supposed to break a pinky promise, Vincent! It's _the rules_," Lorrenne protested. Rikku ripped her arm from his grasp.

"This is my family; I can spend as much time as I want with them. Heck, I could even move in with them; I don't they'd mind. What's your rush anyway?" Rikku turned away from him, not waiting for his answer, and pulled Tidus into a hug. "H-Hey!" Tidus protested.

"Oh, hush. It's just a hug. It's not like I have the death touch or something." Tidus stared at her, smirking. Rikku's jaw dropped. "Oh, you big jerk!" She punched his shoulder.

"Hey! I didn't get my hug yet!" Lorrenne chimed in.

"Oh! I'm soo sorry Lorrenne," She kneeled down and gave Lorrenne a hug. "How's that?"

"Much, much better!"

Rikku laughed. "Alright. Well, Mr. Impatient here really wants to go, so I'd better go, too. Maybe keep him calm since it seems like he's in a bad mood," Tidus looked at her with an eyebrow raised. "What? – Oh, I swear, you have a sick, sick mind, Tidus!!" She threw a pebble at him. Vincent nearly choked.

"Okay, okay! So what if I do? Just get a move on," Tidus replied, blocking the pebble with both hands.

"Fine, we will, Mr. Jerk!"

"Remember! You promised me and mommy that you'd come back and visit! Better keep it!" Lorrenne said.

"You know how well I keep my promises better than anyone, don't you?" Lorrenne nodded. "Then I will come back," Rikku felt a hand tugging on her arm again and looked to see who it was. It was Yuffie. "We really have to go now. Vincent's already started on his way back to the mansion," Rikku nodded and gave one final wave to her family before following after Yuffie and Vincent.


	10. Attack at HOME

_The blonde ran through the twisting, spiraling halls, panting. She could hear voices and she wanted to know exactly where they came from._

_She turned into a room. It was dark, but not dark enough that she couldn't see anything. She saw three figures; her father, Gippal and Brother. They were all engaged in their conversation._

Bang.

_The sound of a gunshot. Brother fell to the ground. She tried to scream out his name, but nothing came out._

Bang.

_Now, it was her father that fell to the ground. Gippal looked up at her, worry in his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could,_

Bang.

_Gippal fell face first to the floor. She rushed over to the bodies, gasping at the sight of the blood pools around them. She looked around for the murder, but saw nothing._

Bang.

_Once._

Bang.

_Twice._

Bang.

_Three times. She set a hand on her stomach, feeling the bullet holes there. She turned around to see if she could see the – her – murder. Who she saw made her jaw drop. "V-Vincent?" She managed to stutter before she fell on the ground. She felt the tears run down her cheeks but didn't stop them. She whimpered in pain since she couldn't scream. "Rikku? Rikku! Wake up!"_

"Huh?" Dreary-eyed and sluggish, Rikku sat up and rubbed her eyes. They were…Wet? What? She took her hands from her eyes and stared down at them, at the wetness. She them brought her eyes up, green spirals meeting crimson…

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Vincent, having already been awake, heard whimpering somewhere within the house.

'_**Now who the hell whimpering at this time of night, host?' **_Chaos asked. Vincent shrugged, pushing the comment away. He got up and followed to where he'd heard the whimpering from, which just 'happened' to be in Rikku's room.

'_**Why would she be whimpering?' **_

'_Nightmare, maybe?'_ Vincent replied.

'_**Well, that makes perfect sense,' **_There was no sarcasm in Chaos' voice, which made the gunslinger growl lowly.

_Creak._

Vincent peeked in through the door of Rikku's room. He couldn't see very much.

_Creak._

He stepped in the room and kneeled down next to her bed, studying her face. Tear marks stained her cheeks as her face was obviously showing some sort of pain. Her hand moved to her stomach, as if something were there. "V-Vincent?" His gaze went back to her face, seeing that she was still asleep. He assumed that the only reason she'd called his name was because he was probably in her dream – no, nightmare. Her face had a pained expression and he took this opportunity to shake, or call, her awake.

"Rikku? Rikku! Wake up!"

He shook her softly as she sat up and rubbed her eyes. He stood up straight and looked down at her as she looked down at her hands. She muttered something that he couldn't make out. She then looked up at him, their eyes linking.

"You were having a nightmare," He was the first to break the silence.

She nodded. "I know."

"Care to tell me about it?" The gunslinger sat down next to her, looking at her. Was that…_concern_ she saw in his eyes? She blinked and looked back at him, noticing that he didn't have a shirt on, just pants. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks. _'Thank Yevon that it's dark in here…,'_ She thought, nodding.

"My dream started with me running through twisting and spiraling hallways; they seemed that they'd never end. After a while, I ended up in a room with my father, Gippal and Brother in it. They were so engaged in their conversation that they hadn't heard me come in. And then, out of nowhere, I heard a gunshot and Brother fell to the ground. Another gunshot and my father also fell to the ground. Gippal looked over at me with worry in his eyes – I saw it – and tried to say something, but before he could, a bullet pierced him, too…,"

Unshed tears shined in her eyes but she blinked them away. She blinked again as she felt arms envelop her. As she was pulled closer to Vincent, she laid her head on his chest. _'He's probably really clueless doing this; But he has nooo idea how good this feels…,' _She thought and shook her head, continuing her telling of the nightmare.

"But this is the _**worst**_ part; I went over to the three bodies, gasping at the blood pooling around them-" She shuddered as she remembered that part. "-and a few moments after that, _I _got shot in the stomach **three times**. I turned around to see who had shot me and...I saw you. . .," It was now that the tears seeped out from her eyes.

Vincent blinked at her saying that she saw him. No sobs came from her, but he could feel the wetness of her tears on his chest.

"Get some rest, Rikku,"

Rikku brought her head up from his chest, pulling out of his grasp. "After that night mare I just had? No way!" She shook her head, her hair hitting her face, but she didn't seem to mind as some of it fell in her face after she was done shaking her head.

'_**Stubborn-ass thief, isn't she?'**_

'_Yes,' _

"What do you do when you space out like that, Vincent? Like, where do you go, what do you think of?" Rikku looked up at him curiously. Vincent looked down at her and shook his head.

"I don't _'go' _anywhere because I don't space out,"

"Then what do you call it?"

"Talking to Chaos,"

Rikku's eyes widened as she sat on her knees, moving her face up to his, her palms face down on the mattress to keep her balance.

"Whoa! You can talk to him?! What's it like? No, no. What's _he _like?"

'_**Sarcastic, annoying, helpful at times. Tell her all that, Vincent,'**_

'…_.I'll tell her the _truth_,'_

'_**That is the truth!'**_

'……_..'_

"Vincent?"

"He is sarcastic and annoying," Vincent answered.

Rikku laughed and sat back down on the bed, wiping the somewhat dried tears from her cheeks.

"Just like my father. Oh! Speaking of him, can we go see him tomorrow? I've begun to miss him,"

Vincent nodded. "Anyone you'd like to take with you?"

"You, Yuffie, Tifa, pretty much the whole AVALANCHE team, just not Barret and Cid; they'd upset father too much with their foul mouths," She smiled a bit, her head tilted slightly. Vincent nodded again. The thief looked at the clock. "2:30 am? Wow. I think I can stay up for the rest of the night. But, you, Vincent, _you_ gotta get some rest." She playfully punched his shoulder, but not so hard to hurt him.

"I don't need sleep," He replied.

"Oh, yes you do!" Rikku got up and pulled on his arm, trying to get him off her bed. "Get your butt in bed now, Mister Valentine! Or you're gonna have something _red _and **pointy** up your butt!"

Vincent laughed and got up, letting her push him to his room. She shut the door behind him and went back to her room, took out a pen and notepad and began drawing.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

9:00 came and Rikku was up cooking, again. She glanced up at the clock that was on the oven and blinked. _'Nine o' clock and he's _still _not up?'_ She shook her head, turned the stove off and took of her apron, heading upstairs. She opened Vincent's door, finding him still asleep. She shook her head and stepped into his room, kneeling down next to his ear.

"WAKE UP!!!" She yelled. Instantly, Vincent sprang up, looking around. The blonde laughed, clutching her stomach. Vincent looked over at her and gave her one of his death glares. She didn't once twitch; just stared back at him innocently.

"C'mon. Breakfast is cooking. Cid'll come pick us up in an hour or so; Cloud's coming on Fenrir. Get up and dressed!" And with a final clap of her hands, she turned and walked out, shutting the door behind her so he could have his privacy.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Come on Vincent! We don' have all day!" Cid yelled. Vincent walked casually out of the manor. Rikku watched Cloud come closer and closer on Fenrir. Once he stopped, she ran over to him.

"Oh! Can I ride on the Fenrir with you, Cloud? I've never rode on a motorcycle before!"

Cloud smiled and nodded.

"What's wrong with my airship?!" Cid yelled to Rikku.

"I'm right here! No need to yell. And there's no problem with your airship, I'm just afraid of heights."

Cid blinked and waved his hand dismissively, turning and walking away, mumbling something under his breath. "Alrigh'! Everyone, except Rikku, on the Highwind!"

"Tell me about the motorcycle ride later!" Yuffie whispered to Rikku.

"Eck! Nothing's gonna happen between me and him, Yuffie!"

"No, no, no! I didn't mean that! I meant what it's like riding a motorcycle; I've never been on one either."

"Ohhh. Okay."

"Yuffie! On the Highwind!" Cid yelled once again.

"Coming, coming!" Yuffie waved and ran towards the airship. Rikku turned on her heel and got on Fenrir, wrapping her arms around Cloud's waist.

"Ready?" Cloud asked.

"Yup!"

"Okay." Cloud started Fenrir and soon, they were zipping past trees. All the while, Rikku was remembering the ride with Tidus to Macalania Temple…

"_Sorry about Wakka!" Tidus said._

"_Eh heh heh…he didn't have to be so mean, ya? I almost cried," Rikku replied._

"_Uh, Rikku?"_

"_Just kidding! It's okay. At least you're still nice."_

_Silence for a while._

"_Hey, do I look like Yunie, you think?"_

"_Huh?"_

"_Well, my dad's sister is Yunie's mother. You get it?"_

"_Hmm…Ah! I had no idea. If you say so,"_

"_Mhm."_

"_Okay! I guess you're guarding your family, then."_

_Rikku looked down. "Yuna's not the only one that I want to protect…,"_

"_Huh?"_

"_We Al Bhed want to protect all of the summoners, you know? Summoners are…Well, you could say that...they sacrifice themselves to, well, bring happiness to Spira."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Oh!"_

"_Rikku?"_

"_Yes?"_

"'_sacrifice themselves'?"_

"_You know, the pilgrimage! It, uh, takes a lot outta you."_

"_Oh! Right. But you know, Yuna's real serious about being a summoner. For Yuna, the pilgrimage kinda means everything to her. You are gonna help her, too, aren't you Rikku?"_

"_Mhm,"_

"_So you shouldn't say that Yuna's sacrificing herself."_

_Rikku tightened her grip around Tidus's waist. _

"_Uh, Rikku?"_

"_I hope you're right."_

"Rikku?" Cloud looked back at her.

Rikku looked up. "Hmm?"

"We're here."

"Oh," She let go of his waist and got up, only to stumble to the ground.

"Whoa, there," Cloud helped her up. "Knees were a little weak there, huh?" Rikku nodded, brushing the sand off herself.

"Where are the others?"

Cloud pointed behind them. "Still getting off the airship."

She nodded again and made her way over to the airship, clapping her hands loudly.

"Come on! I wanna go see my father!!"

"Alright, alright! We're coming!" Replied Tifa.

Soon, everyone was out of the airship and following Rikku towards Home.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

When they got there, bodies were spread all around. Rikku looked around in horror.

"No, no, no, no!"

She held back the tears, trying to identify who had been killed.

'_Father. Gippal. Brother! Where are they?! Please don't tell me they were killed, too!'_

The thought scared her. She ran towards the place where machina was made and went into Gippal's office, since he was the manager and creator of machine. There, she found him on the floor, three bullet places on his body; one in his stomach, one on his arm, and the other in his chest…oh, so close to his heart. He was still breathing, though Rikku knew that his breathing would soon stop. She kneeled down next to him, placing his head in her lap.

"Gippal," She whispered, "what happened?"

"The Bevelle…came looking for something, though they didn't look like Bevelle." He answered.

"Didn't look like Bevelle?"

"No. They had black suits on,"

She blinked. _'Could he mean the Turks? The Turks came here? But why would they come here? What could they possibly be looking for?'_

"Rikku," His voice interrupted her thoughts, "I'm sorry for what I've done; I regret it now. I love you and always will." He reached up and placed his hand on her cheek. She felt something leathery in his hand. She looked at his hand, seeing that he was giving her his eye patch. But what she didn't hear, was his last breath. Tears rolled down her cheeks for the second time as she looked down at Gippal, feeling a presence behind her. Instantly, she knew it was Vincent.

"I've always wondered what he looked like without his eye patch…," She wiped her tears away, not noticing the blood hand print on her cheek from Gippal, and shook her head, standing up. She clutched the eye patch in her hand and whistled. In 5 minutes, guards surrounded her, not seeming to even see Vincent.

"Take Gippal's body and preserve it until proper arrangements can be made," The guards nodded but didn't move. "Now!" Rikku shouted. "Yes, Miss Highwind," One of the guards answered. The guards instantly did what she said.

"Don't call me 'Miss'. It's just Rikku,"

"But, your father ordered –"

"I don't care what he ordered! I don't like being called 'Miss'! Makes me sound old," She mumbled the last part and turned on her heel to see the rest of AVALANCHE behind her. _'When did they come in? I didn't hear them,'_ She shook her head and sniffled.

"Let's go see if Brother and my father are still alive," She walked past Vincent, not bothering to make any eye contact with him, and went higher up the stairs.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Vincent took one last glance at Gippal's dead body and closed his eyes. _'Seems I assumed wrong of him,'_

'_**He is expected of acts such as what he did; even Rikku knew that he was more aggressive, jealous and teasing than a lover,'**_ Chaos' words echoed in Vincent's mind.

"Vincent?" Vincent opened his eyes and looked down at the ninja before him. "Are you coming?" Yuffie smiled as he nodded and grabbed his wrist, pulling him behind her.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Father," Rikku addressed him. She walked into his office and stood in front of his desk, Tifa, Vincent, Yuffie and Cloud behind her. Her father looked up from his paper work and blinked.

"Yes, _daughter_?" He seemed to mock the way she called him 'father'.

"Did you have _any_ idea that we were attacked?"

Her father nodded. "Yes,"

"Then why didn't you do anything about it?"

"There was nothing I could do. I sent the guards and soldiers out."

"And we've lost some of them. Heck, we've lost half our race. _**Again**_. Have any clue who attacked us?"

Cid nodded again. "Yes."

"Who?"

"They called themselves the 'Turks'."

Vincent almost choked. Rikku tilted her head. "Turks?"

"Yes, Turks. But never mind them; there are more important things to deal with."

Rikku was out raged by this. "More important things?! Like what?"

"Cugz ayo kyurk dy msyyc ed mnurhe esetila."

"What?"

"Yes. You're going to msyyc there,"

"WHAT?!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

**A/N – **END.

Translation for Rikku's father's words; "Like you going to school at ShinRa Academy,"

DUN DUN DUNNNNN xD

There WILL be a sequel to this&it'll be a RikkuxVincent one instead of a RikkuxGippal one since Gippal's dead. I seriously almost cried writing the death scene… D: This is probably my longest chapter o.o;;


End file.
